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• First Lady (syn. for 'Sterling Silver')
• FISsan

89 favorite votes.  
Average rating: GOOD+.  

Mauve or mauve blend Hybrid Tea.
Registration name: Sterling Silver (hybrid tea, Fisher 1955)

Bred by Esther Gladys (Mrs. Gordon) Fisher (United States, before 1955).
Introduced in United States by Jackson & Perkins Co. (Newark, NY) in 1957 as 'Sterling Silver'.
Introduced by Unknown (Australia) in 1960 as 'Sterling Silver'.
Introduced in France by Vilmorin-Andrieux in 1963 as 'Sterling Silver'.

Florists Rose, Hybrid Tea.  

Lilac, ages to lighter .  Strong, citrus, fruity, sweet fragrance.  30 to 35 petals.  Average diameter 3.5".  Medium to large, full (26-40 petals), borne mostly solitary, high-centered to cupped bloom form.  Blooms in flushes throughout the season.  Long, pointed buds.  

Upright.  Glossy, dark green, leathery foliage.  3 to 5 leaflets.  

Height: 2' to 4' (60 to 120cm).  

USDA zone 7b and warmer.  Spring Pruning: Remove old canes and dead or diseased wood and cut back canes that cross. In warmer climates, cut back the remaining canes by about one-third. In colder areas, you'll probably find you'll have to prune a little more than that.  Requires spring freeze protection (see glossary - Spring freeze protection) .  

United States - Patent No: PP 1,433  on  8 Nov 1955   VIEW USPTO PATENT
Application No: 484,861  on  28 Jan 1955

The plant patent states: "The male parent was the variety Peace and an unnamed seedling as the female parent - the latter coming from a strain similar to Morning Mist." Therefore, the seed parent is NOT Morning Mist, but a related seedling.

A correspondent writes: Although 'Sterling Silver' is stingy with bloom production, a weak grower, a host to a variety of diseases, and not very winter hardy (unusual for an offspring of 'Peace'), it is the true and original lavender rose, being nearly thornless, and having a sweet and citrusy fragrance, and a certain prowess in the vase. The parent or ancestor of nearly every single modern lavender variety today.

That comment inspired this response from a fan of 'Sterling Silver': I totally disagree with the statement posted under this rose relative to bloom production. My 'Sterling Silver's are my TOP producers. They outbloom every other rose I own including 'Princesse de Monaco' who is a bloom machine. It is true that this rose needs TLC in the first 2 - 3 years; however once it becomes established it is a fabulous rose. It is not for those who are not willing to give it this TLC though. I am in No. Va. Zone 7A.

CAMBEL writes: I, like another person who commented about 'Sterling Silver' on this page, live in Northern Virginia. I stuck a 'Sterling Silver' in the ground, didn't do much beyond watering it, and out of three origional stallks, two survived the first year and produced blooms pretty regularly, it is already sprouting strongly for the second year. Is there perhaps something in the Soil of the Northern Virginia area that is particularly good for this variety? I've heard from friends in other areas that 'Sterling Silver' wouldn't grow in their areas.


From an article in the Telegraph Delivery Spirit, 23(2): 36 (1956)
Hybridizing Roses
By Gladys Fisher
Arnold-Fisher Co. Woburn, Mass

"Peace, the most famous of all garden roses, is the female parent of "Sterling Silver". Though this new lavender rose inherits the wonderful vigor of Peace, its constant blooming habit comes from the male parent of mixed ancestry, including Rapture, Better Times and Pink Delight."